~ An archive of nutmeg's stumbles

Monthly Archives: January 2010

Every month Buglife, the Invertebrate Trust, focuses on a different ‘bug’ and tells its story. Some of them are quite commonly seen; others are rarely encountered.

Snow flea (Boreus hyemalis) on moss. Image: Roger Key

The snow flea caught my eye. It’s not actually a flea; it’s a member of the scorpion fly (which aren’t flies!) family. The adult is only seen in the coldest months, lives in moss and is most easily seen when it walks on snow. I’ve never seen one, but now I’ll be looking out for them, although I don’t think there are any records of them in my part of the country.

Very striking NASA satellite image of how Britain is at the moment. Beautiful and cold. I’m unable to get into work today because of the conditions on the roads and it’s nice to have a day off – although I’ve got plenty of admin I can be doing from home.